April 30, 2001
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Ken Griffey Jr. is being replaced by Deion Sanders.
The Cincinnati Reds put Griffey on the 15-day disabled list Sunday because of a partially torn left hamstring that has reduced him to pinch-hitting for the past month.
They plan to replace him with Sanders, who is eligible to rejoin the club on Tuesday. The two-sport athlete will be called up from Triple-A Louisville, where he rejuvenated his baseball career by hitting .459.
``It's a lot easier now to disable Junior when you have Deion Sanders to replace him,'' general manager Jim Bowden said.
Griffey has resisted the disabled list even though his hamstring won't let him run or swing freely. He partially tore the lower part of the hamstring in a spring training game on March 26.
He aggravated it while leaving the batter's box during a pinch-hit appearance Saturday in Colorado, prompting the Reds to re-evaluate.
``He didn't re-tear the hamstring,'' Dr. Timothy Kremchek said. ``It scared us enough. We were lucky he didn't really aggravate it. Why take a chance at this point? We tried something, it didn't work.''
Griffey was 0-for-12 as a pinch-hitter with five strikeouts. He reached base on three walks and once on a hit-by-pitch, and was replaced by a pinch-runner each time.
Although he wanted to keep pinch-hitting while he rehabilitated the hamstring, Griffey conceded that it was probably best for him to go on the disabled list.
``I hate the DL, but I've got to get better,'' Griffey said.
After a magnetic resonance imaging test on April 17 found the partial tear, the Reds knew that allowing Griffey to continue pinch-hitting was risky. Griffey wanted to keep playing.
``I may be stubborn in that sense, but I don't have anything else to do,'' he said. ``From February to October -- hopefully late October -- there's nothing marked on my calendar except baseball.''
Bowden said Griffey's lack of success as a pinch-hitter also was a factor in the decision to put him on the disabled list.
``He went oh-for-the-month,'' Bowden said. ``It appeared that (his) at-bats weren't getting any better.''
Late Sunday, the Reds also optioned right-hander Matt Skrmetta to Louisville and left his roster spot open. The Reds are off Monday before opening a series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Cinergy Field.
Sanders' return will give the Reds another outfielder. Manager Bob Boone isn't sure exactly how he'll use Sanders, who can play center or left.
The Reds' outfield was productive during a 5-1 road trip that concluded with a 14-7 loss Sunday in Colorado. Michael Tucker, who has replaced Griffey in center for most games, is batting .324. Backup center fielder Ruben Rivera is hitting .327.
Sanders, 33, has not played in the majors since 1997, when he quit baseball to concentrate on playing cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys. Given a chance to join the Reds last season, he chose instead to play for the Washington Redskins.
He approached Bowden about giving baseball another try over the winter, and the Reds offered a minor league contract. Sanders made the most of the opportunity.
Sanders extended his hitting streak to 13 games with an infield single Sunday as Triple-A Louisville lost to Columbus 6-2.
With Griffey unable to run, the Reds essentially have been playing with a 24-man roster for the first month of the season. Sanders will give Boone more options.
Bowden thinks it was a good idea to try using Griffey in a limited role rather than placing him on the disabled list much sooner.
``You make your decisions at the time the best you can, and this plan didn't work,'' Bowden said. ``Plan B would be Deion Sanders on Tuesday.''